Sevendust first forged a familial tie amongst each other in 1994 that translated into one of the most die-hard audiences in the game. To this day, the connection between fans and the Grammy® Award-nominated gold-certified hard rock outfit only grows stronger. For their twelfth full-length and first release for Rise Records All I See Is War, the quintet did the best thing they could possibly do to combat all of the division in the streets and on social media; they went and made a Sevendust record—just bigger, ballsier, and bolder than before – and they couldn’t be more excited to bring it to Australia and New Zealand. We talk to guitarist Clint Lowerey about the tour and the longevity of the band.
Andrew: Hows things with you and the band at the moment?
Clint: Things are good! We just came off a really good tour over here in the States with Tremonti and the band Cane Hill, currently taking a little break and then we’re going to head over down there to you!
Andrew: Nice! It’s good to have you back in Australia, I guess we last saw you here about two years ago right?
Clint: Yeah it’s crazy it’s been that long, we need to get back. It’s definitely time.
Andrew: We caught one of the shows on the tour, I think it might of been the last show. How did it end up going for you guys if you remember?
Clint: It was great man! It was one of the best tours we did like the one we just came off and the crowds were great, a bunch of sold out shows. The energy was great with the crowd, people seemed to really dig the new record. We tried to play a lot of songs off of “Home”, we just recently did a bunch of anniversary shows so we put a lot of those songs back in because we were enjoying the response on that record. It’s been such a great vibe lately.
Andrew: Yeah I remember things were pretty buzzing at that time. I remember speaking to a few of the other guys in the band and I think at that particular time when we spoke you guys were up for a Grammy and the new album had just come out so everything seemed to be going really great for you guys. In that time and since “All I See Is War” has come out, how has it been with the band? Have you guys been on the road non-stop?
Clint: We’ve definitely hit a cycle. We’ve just finished our second headline tour in the United States and it hasn’t been too much of a grind. We took a break, we did one run, we took a break. We’re not trying to burn out or anything, we realized that there’s a long journey to this career so we tried to find a balance of playing shows and creating awareness for the new record but at the same time making sure we preserve our sanity. We want this to be enjoyable for ourselves and going out and playing over and over like we did when we were younger just doesn’t make sense – for us, for the crowd, for anybody. So when we do play the shows, they’re very special and everyone is enthusiastic about being there.
Andrew: Is that the biggest difference that’s changed from the early days compared to now? That you find that you have a routine figured out and you know how to be on the road properly compared to when you guys first started?
Clint: Oh yeah when we came out we were like a wild bull. We wanted to be gone, we didn’t want to have any attachments at home. We were just a young, hungry band and that was great and an amazing way to establish our band just going out and playing show after show after show. But we did realize after 10 years, 20 years, things change. We have families, we don’t want to be around each other so much where you start getting weary of each other. We realize that we have a lot of respect for each other so we don’t want to put ourselves in a position where we put a strain on that relationship because we all know how that ends. We don’t want to do that so there’s a balance in our band now.
Andrew: It’s amazing and also a rarity to see these days, the fact that you guys have been around for quite a long time now and it’s pretty much the same lineup as it always has been. The chemistry must be the main ingredient in why you have been able to work together for so long.
Clint: Yeah initially when the band was put together, it was put together with the mission of being in a band with guys you like. There wasn’t any tension at all, when we first started and I was put in, it was based on the criteria was do we like being in the same room together as people. There’s a lot of good musicians out there but ultimately you much rather be with people that play well together because it’s easier to create with people you like and it’s easier to live with people you like. It’s easier to do everything, do business so ultimately that was the thing we looked for in the beginning and it seems to have worked in the long game. I mean we have struggles like everyone else, I left for a little while trying to find myself so yeah there’s been ups and downs but that is definitely the mission that we set out to accomplish.
Andrew: And obviously album number 12 came out last year “All I See Is War”. What kind of a response have you been getting so far and do we expect to see many of those songs in the setlist in Australia?
Clint: The response for “All I See Is War” has been great. We used a producer and we hadn’t used a producer in three records so that in itself changed the dynamic a bit and got us out a little bit…I think if we had done another one ourselves we would have kinda gotten a little redundant. But we used Elvis [Michael Baskette], he was an amazing fit, we’ll use him again. We’ll definitely play some songs from that record over there, that’s the purpose of the tour is to kind of create awareness for the new songs. They’re fun for us because they’re new so we’ll definitely play some, no question.
Andrew: It must be a balancing act these days putting together a setlist, knowing which ones to chuck out and which ones to add in I suppose.
Clint: Yeah that’s a huge challenge, we started way in advance before the tour starts. Australia will be different because we don’t go there a lot so we’re gonna try and make sure we cover the front record but at the same time play songs from the other records that the Australian fan base hasn’t really heard a lot. We’re going to look at what we did last time, make some adjustments and then try to incorporate the new record.
Andrew: This was a question I came across by accident in that obviously with a certain amount of years on you and there are certain songs that fans expect you to play, are there any particular songs that you have been playing pretty regular over the years that at times, you ever get sick of playing at all?
Clint: Oh yeah there’s a ton of them like “Bitch” and “Black”, those were the first songs we ever did. I like playing them still but there’s times when you get a little weary of them, “Praise” and some of those songs, “Waffle”. We play them so many times but when the crowd is into it, you kind of rediscover things you like about the song again. When people sing back that never gets old, people singing the songs back really loud but definitely there’s nights when, ‘Oh man can we skip this song’. Especially when it’s a song that don’t go over that great.
Andrew: Flipping that then, what’s your favorite song to play these days?
Clint: I like playing “Dirty”. It’s fun, it’s a good live song, there’s a cool little solo in it. It kind of has a bit of everything that we do. “Unforgiving” is fun, it’s off the new record as well and has some cool things to it, those are the ones on the current love list.
Andrew: Well we are looking forward to hearing the new stuff for sure. So going back in time a little bit, do you remember the first time you came to Australia? Was there any particular highlights or stories you would ike to share with the fans at all?
Clint: The first time we came was a little foggy because I was kind of hitting the bottom in terms of drinking and those things. I remember there was something about that trip where I kind of came unglued a little bit so there was a negative thing but I do remember the positive and that was the fact that there was a really good response to “Animosity”, the third record we did. That was one of those things where I could not believe the crowds, I couldn’t believe the response. So my first impression of Australia was really gratitude, I just thought the world of the place. It was a place I always wanted to go, always appreciated the humour and the bands that came from there so there was definitely a love affair going on with Australia before we went and it lived up to every expectation. It’s a beautiful place.
Andrew: Do you find the Aussie crowds are any different to American crowds at all? Or is everyone the same because of the fact that everyone has a shared passion for the same music?
Clint: No there’s not a difference. It’s like a new place, there’s different characteristics in the culture. They’re the same at the shows but because we don’t go there a lot, there’s just a “newness” to it. It’s like seeing someone like a new girlfriend, it’s like a honeymoon phase over there. Whereas here it’s, ‘Good to see you again, let’s do this thing’. Over there it’s, ‘It’s been so long, let’s really embrace each other’. So there’s a special thing that happens every time we go there.
Andrew: Do you get to spend any down time in Australia at all? Check out any sights or any particular place that you have loved to visit over the years?
Clint: All the places that we go, New Zealand and Australia. Last time I was there, I do a lot of crossfit and fitness stuff, and Australia has some of the best crossfit games in the world and amazing athletes so I look forward to touching base with them when I get back over there and training. Just seeing the people that we met times before and hoping I run into Luke from Dead Letter Circus and a few other bands like Twelve Foot Ninja and connect with them.
Andrew: Great bands and we are looking forward to it! Any last words for the Aussie fans?
Clint: We are super excited. Get on Facebook and social media and let us know what songs you want to hear and we will be more than happy to fill in and make sure we try to put together an interesting setlist for the Australian fans.
MJR and THE FACTION PRESENTS
SEVENDUST
AUSTRALIA & NZ TOUR 2019
AUSTRALIAN DATES – SUPPORTED BY REDHOOK
Tuesday 23 April 2019 – Powerstation, Auckland *
Thursday 25 April 2019 – Tivoli, Brisbane
Friday 26 April 2019 – Metro, Sydney
Saturday 27 April 2019 – Forum, Melbourne
Monday 29 April 2019 – The Gov, Adelaide
Tuesday 30 April 2019 – Capitol, Perth
* Redhook not appearing
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AT MJRPRESENTS.COM
